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Published on 07/14/11 at 11:10*Microphones are very subjective. Some microphones that work for some brilliantly may be disastrous on others. It is therefore important to understand the context in which this review is written and take it with a grain of salt, like all reviews on microphones should be treated.*
The Behringer B-2 Pro is a large diaphragm multi pattern studio condenser, and where Behringer's budget model of selling their microphones screeches to a resounding halt.
It is not that the B-2 Pro is a terrible microphone; it's quite usable, and has very acceptable specs. First off, it is multi pattern, with the pickups switchable between cardioid, figure 8, and omnidirectional. It has a standard frequency response of 20-20,000 Hz, a self noise that varies minimally (based on the pickup pattern you're using at the time) around 17 dB and a signal to noise ratio that again, varies a bit around 77 dB. This makes the Behringer B-2 Pro absolutely acceptable spec wise. It also includes the 10 dB pad and the low frequency roll off.
On a less essential note, Behringer generously includes a shockmount, a windscreen, and a nice flight case to put the entire package in for transport and storage. Not to mention, the Behringer B-2 Pro actually looks quite nice. The problem lies in the sound of the microphone:
It suffers from that high frequency exaggeration that plagues most budget microphones, and while I may forgive Behringer for doing this to their very cheap microphones, the B-2 Pro has crossed the line into the territory of microphones that do not do this to the sound.
OVERALL OPINION
There, quite simply, is no reason to buy the Behringer B-2 Pro, unless you love the sound of the low end microphones. Anyone can criticize me by saying that it's the person, not the gear, that counts, but when it comes to the Behringer B-2 Pro, I can completely agree with them (I do, anyway) and still drive them away from the B-2 Pro. You can find a bunch of microphones at this price, but if you're about to "settle" on the B-2 Pro, stop. Take a look around. There are a few magical microphones hovering around the B-2's price that outshine it in sound quality, and yes, even features.
The Behringer B-2 Pro is a large diaphragm multi pattern studio condenser, and where Behringer's budget model of selling their microphones screeches to a resounding halt.
It is not that the B-2 Pro is a terrible microphone; it's quite usable, and has very acceptable specs. First off, it is multi pattern, with the pickups switchable between cardioid, figure 8, and omnidirectional. It has a standard frequency response of 20-20,000 Hz, a self noise that varies minimally (based on the pickup pattern you're using at the time) around 17 dB and a signal to noise ratio that again, varies a bit around 77 dB. This makes the Behringer B-2 Pro absolutely acceptable spec wise. It also includes the 10 dB pad and the low frequency roll off.
On a less essential note, Behringer generously includes a shockmount, a windscreen, and a nice flight case to put the entire package in for transport and storage. Not to mention, the Behringer B-2 Pro actually looks quite nice. The problem lies in the sound of the microphone:
It suffers from that high frequency exaggeration that plagues most budget microphones, and while I may forgive Behringer for doing this to their very cheap microphones, the B-2 Pro has crossed the line into the territory of microphones that do not do this to the sound.
OVERALL OPINION
There, quite simply, is no reason to buy the Behringer B-2 Pro, unless you love the sound of the low end microphones. Anyone can criticize me by saying that it's the person, not the gear, that counts, but when it comes to the Behringer B-2 Pro, I can completely agree with them (I do, anyway) and still drive them away from the B-2 Pro. You can find a bunch of microphones at this price, but if you're about to "settle" on the B-2 Pro, stop. Take a look around. There are a few magical microphones hovering around the B-2's price that outshine it in sound quality, and yes, even features.